


Give me a reason (to stay)

by samstoleaburger



Series: Here we are again (like clockwork) [5]
Category: DmC: Devil May Cry
Genre: Arguments, Broken Families, Childhood Memories, Families of Choice, Fix-It of Sorts, Gen, Post-Game(s)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-09-24
Updated: 2017-09-24
Packaged: 2019-01-05 03:44:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,447
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12182256
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/samstoleaburger/pseuds/samstoleaburger
Summary: Dante watched her go and flexed his jaw before he turned back to his meal."What's your problem?"Or so he had hoped.





	Give me a reason (to stay)

**Author's Note:**

> So the 'arguments' part of this came after not touching this since I started it on July 20th. And then this happened...alongside, well, Dante letting the swear words fly free. *throws confetti*

Dante hopped up, grabbing the nearest branch of the tree that he could reach before grunting as he hauled himself up. With a satisfied huff, he turned to regard Vergil and frowned when he saw that Vergil was still standing at the base. "C'mon, Vergil!"  
  
He shook his head, biting his lower lip as he looked back toward the house. "Dante...I'm not so sure about this."  
  
"We'll be _fine_." Dante threw up a hand and waved it in a circle to encompass the area. "'sides, it's just a tree. What's the worst that can happen?"  
  
Vergil shot him a dirty look. "We could fall."  
  
"Ugh..." Dante dropped his hand as he hung his head. He kicked his feet a bit before he looked back at Vergil with a pout. "You really think I'll let that happen? Don'tcha trust me?"  
  
A pause. "I do."  
  
"Then get up here already! The sun's about to go down!" He pressed his front to the bark and held his hand out, clasping his fingers around Vergil's wrist when he leaped up to grab hold. With a grunt, Dante reared back, keeping his grip tight and grabbed the back of Vergil's shirt as he began to heft himself up onto the branch. "This is gonna be _awesome_."  
  
Vergil let go of Dante and tipped his head back to peer up at the colorful sky. He turned to regard Dante with a grimace. "I'm not going any higher than this."  
  
Dante rolled his eyes with a huff. "Yeah, yeah. Got it." He shifted to get a better view and reached up to pull his jacket's hood up over his head, taking hold of the strings to yank it tight. "We wouldn't be able to see when the sun goes down anyway."  
  
Vergil fidgeted with his sleeve for a moment as his gaze was once again on the pinking skyline. He then brushed off imaginary dust on his pant leg before he tilted his head to look at Dante once more. It only took a few, scant seconds before his look was returned and a small smile stretched across Vergil's lips.  
  
"Dante -"

* * *

"- it's almost two in the afternoon! Don't you have someone to do a job for soon?"  
  
Dante grumbled as he swatted at the hand shaking him and buried his face into his pillow. Fuck getting up and fuck whoever needed an exterminator. He wanted his sleep and just as he thought of telling whoever was trying to wake him up - _Kat,_ his mind dredged up - to go away, the remnants of his dream began to recede. Alongside any hopes of staying in bed.  
  
He gave an annoyed huff as he forced himself to sit up and most likely looked like death warmed over. There was an intelligible mumble as Dante waved Kat away so he could get out of bed and get ready to go.  
  
Kat couldn't hold in her laugh once Dante nearly tripped over his boot on his way to the bathroom. "You won't have time to sit down and eat. I'll leave you a pack of Pop-Tarts on the counter." She moved to follow him out the door and turned toward the staircase without pause. "Also, Vergil went out about an hour ago."  
  
"Mmhmm..."  
  
"Yamato is still where you left it, in case you were wondering."  
  
God bless Kat and her ability to read the mood even though Dante's brain is still taking forever to boot up. He made another sound, this time resembling a groan instead of a garble of practically everything and anything under the sun.  
  
"If you're still like this when you get downstairs, I might have to call and cancel the appointment. We can't have you falling asleep on job, after all."  
  
"Mmhmm." was all she got before Dante shut the bathroom door. Effectively cutting off anything else she could have possibly said but also because he didn't want to waste time talking when he should be getting ready to go. "Ugh."  
  
Even though he was doing good and changing the tides, somewhat, to the demon infestation, that didn't change the fact Dante's starting to feel run down. More so than when they had been going after Mundus. As it was a goal, his resurfaced hatred and pain proving to be a worthy motivator during that time. Now, however, the only motivation he has is the bare basics.  
  
Money. Money for food, drinks, clothes, first-aid supplies and whatever else they need.  
  
There was no glory in this nor was it some form of vengeance. Not when the cause of his emotional turmoil was now six feet under and then some. Though the scar still existed, the only balm being Kat's calming, mother-like presence alongside Vergil still being alive. Even if he's been bitter and argumentative since Dante brought him here from their mother's tombstone.  
  
A stone he'd _forgotten_.  
  
Dante grabbed hold of the cold water dial and twisted his hand with a scowl.  
  
Yes, he'd forgotten, but now he's remembering bits and pieces. He's not sure if it's exposure to Vergil or the fact he's not dead-set on a mission like before.  
  
Dante knows that they sparred when they were children. Fighting with battered sticks and how they'd go back into the house with heads hanging sometimes. Especially when muddied clothing was involved or bumps and scrapes that resulted in blood.  
  
He even remembered a time he'd destroyed one of Vergil's books for some trivial, stupid ass reason. How he'd done it because he was a vindictive shit at the worst of times. Dante remembered the devastated look on Vergil's face, how his face scrunched up, chest hitching as tears clung to his lashes. He couldn't recall exactly what he'd said to Vergil then but it had ended in tears and mom giving him the scolding of a lifetime.

* * *

"But he -"  
  
"I don't want to hear it, young man." She placed a hand on her hip and pursed her lips together. Disapproval clear on her face. "You go find Vergil and say you're sorry right now."  
  
Dante averted his gaze and clenched his jaw as he furrowed his brow. "...don' wanna." he mumbled.  
  
Eva rose a brow. "I'm sorry. What was that?"  
  
"I said..." He made sure to raise his voice because having mom repeat herself only got them in more trouble most days. Especially when she wasn't going to tolerate things they'd done to each other. "'I don't wanna.'" Dante kicked at the ground and puffed out his cheeks.  
  
"Well, that's too bad. You're going to and I'll be there to make sure you did." Eva sighed and shook her head before she knelt down to be at eye level with him. Her smile soft but also sad. "Dante, you can have all the friends in the world but you only have _one brother_. No one is going to replace him and, when push comes to shove, you'll have to rely on him when you have no one else."  
  
Dante steeled his jaw and jerked as he turned his attention to her. "But I have you and dad."  
  
"I know, sweetie." She lifted a hand and caressed his cheek. "But someday your father and I won't be here. Vergil will need you someday too, Dante. You only have one family and you need to get along. Even if you're mad at him, you need to forgive him. If you do something to upset him, you need to apologize." Eva took hold of his chin and tilted his head toward the doorway where Vergil had run off through not too long ago. "Don't hate him, okay? We all make mistakes and it's best to fix them in the present. Go and tell him you're sorry." She smiled as she released his chin and Dante looked back with a worried look. "Then we'll go out and get him a new book, okay?"  
  
Dante chewed on his lower lip before ducking his head. "Okay."

* * *

He cupped his hands under the faucet as he closed his eyes and splashed water on his face to shock himself awake. Dante furrowed his brow and scrunched up his face as he reached out for the dish rag beside the sink. After patting blindly, his hand eventually touched something soft and he grabbed hold of it to dry his face off.  
  
Once his face was patted dry, Dante opened his left eye to regard his reflection and barely made a sound once he realized he had used yesterday's shirt as a towel. He simply bundled it up and tossed it into the hamper that Kat had found on sale a week ago. The container wobbled from the force before it settled back where it was. Dante then cast another glance toward the mirror and ran his fingers through his hair to give it the illusion of being brushed before making his way back to his room.  
  
As he approached his room, he caught bits of a conversation from the bottom of the stairs. Dante paused, hovering in the doorway as he turned toward the staircase to hear better.  
  
"He's been upstairs for a while now. I think I'll go check to make sure he didn't fall back asleep in the bathroom."  
  
_Oh..._ He rubbed the back of his hand under the side of his nose with a sniff. If Kat was prompting a, 'Yes,' or, 'No,' then that meant that Vergil must be back.  
  
"I'm sure he's fine." There was a momentary pause. "Dante never was a morning person to begin with." Kat's laughter carried up the stairs before Vergil added on, "I can't say I'm surprised that he hasn't broken the habit. Though he might appreciate some coffee."  
  
If he could get away with it, Dante knew he would have slumped on Vergil and called him a saint simply because, yes. That was exactly what he needed right now. Desperately.  
  
Or he would have collapsed onto Kat. Though that was neither here nor there.  
  
Dante dropped his hand and shook his head, trying to get rid of any lingering effects of sleep that tried to drag him under again.  
  
If he had to be honest, Dante was glad that Vergil had decided to stay with them. Albeit temporarily if he choose to leave like Kat said he might. Which Dante hoped but wouldn't admit short of dying that Vergil would continue to remain right where he was. In this small yet somewhat broken family -  
  
Dante grit his teeth and whirled on his heel to grab a nearby shirt to pull over his head.  
  
_It's not family._

* * *

Dante brushed off any inquiry on how he was feeling earlier. Some more lax than others, but he just wished that they would stop asking. It had been wearing his patience thin beyond the point of recognition and Vergil was the only one who left Dante to his devices. Like he didn't care what put Dante in a foul mood and figured Dante would get out of his funk by himself.  
  
The same couldn't be said about Kat though.  
  
She fretted and kept giving him sidelong glances as if she was trying to pick apart the reason just by looks alone. Dante tried his damnedest to keep his waning temper in check but the second she looked like she was about to ask _again_ , he slammed his fist down on the table. It groaned at the impact, plates clattering and soon a webbing of cracks spread out from under his hand.  
  
"Fuckin' Christ! I'm _fine_ , Kat!" Dante dug his nails into the palm of his hand before he forced out a breath and relaxed his fist. "Can't a guy just have a bad day and be left _alone_?"  
  
Kat tightened her hold on her fork as she shot him a look. She put it down on her plate and pushed away from the table to stand. "Excuse me for being worried." Kat picked up the plate to then head toward the kitchen with her frustration radiating off her shoulders.  
  
Dante watched her go and flexed his jaw before he turned back to his meal.  
  
"What's your problem?"  
  
Or so he had hoped.  
  
Dante rose his gaze to level Vergil with a scowl. "My 'problem' is that everyone thinks it's their business to know my business." He stabbed his fork down and brought it up to his mouth, biting down with a little more force than necessary. "Not my fault no one can take a hint to back off."  
  
Vergil sighed and pressed his elbow against the table as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "She's worried because you were in a good mood this morning when she woke you up. Next thing we know, you're storming down the stairs and leaving without so much as an, 'I'm heading out now.'"  
  
Stab. Chew. "Yeah, well, it's none of your business why I'm pissed off."  
  
"You're right. It's not." Vergil lowered his hand and turned his focus to the kitchen for a moment before looking at Dante once more. "However, it becomes my business when you take it out on Kat. She's been through enough and doesn't need you acting like a brat to top it off."  
  
"Oh yeah...?" Dante threw his fork down and jabbed his finger in Vergil's face. "What about you, huh? You brushed her off and called her 'useful' once we beat Mundus! And then we went looking for you even after the fact!" Dante growled low in his throat when he saw he wasn't getting a rise out of him. "You were being just as bad as I am the moment you woke up! Constantly looking for a fight with me! Brushing us off like we were just dust mites in the presence of the almighty Vergil!"  
  
Vergil slowly lowered his fork. "...are you done?"  
  
Dante shoved away from the table, the legs screeching their protest at the shift, and glared at Vergil as he bared his teeth. "No! And I never will be 'cause you've been nothing but a pain in the ass since we saved you!"  
  
"You know, Dante..." Vergil got up as well and lowered his sights to the table. "I don't need to remind you why I gave both of you a hard time. You, in particular." He took hold of the plate and lifted it off of the table just as Kat had. "But I'll have you know I care about Kat too. The whole Mundus incident was a mistake on my part, but I stand by what I said about humans. And you." Vergil lifted his head to level Dante with a cold look. "We're nothing like them. They will die eventually, but that doesn't mean I care any less for Kat."  
  
"If you felt that way from the beginning then why didn't you tell me of your 'grand plans' sooner?! How you wanted to take Mundus' place and rule over the humans!"  
  
"Because you're naive. Not to mention _childish_." Vergil pivoted toward the kitchen, his gaze steady on Dante as he added on, "Looks like some things never change, Dante."  
  
It was then that Dante noticed the crack in Vergil's mask and his breath caught as Vergil turned his back to him.  
  
That look was exactly the same as when Vergil had gone through the portal he'd conjured. An exact replica and it reminded Dante of the way his heart lurched in his chest. Like he was going to vomit but also wanted to scream at the same time. Faint traces of, _"I **loved you** , brother,"_ in the air.  
  
_"Tell him you're sorry, Dante."_

* * *

Kat looked up from the sink once she heard a plate be placed on the counter. She turned, intent on tearing Dante a new one but paused once she saw that Vergil was standing next to her. The look on his face said everything about how the 'talk' with Dante went and she'd had the misfortune of hearing bits and pieces of it. Though, from what she could gather, Dante had hit all the right buttons to rile Vergil up.  
  
The fact that Dante hadn't realized and stopped sooner only made it worse.  
  
"Vergil -"  
  
"Do you need any help, Kat?" Vergil kept his gaze on the plate and worked his jaw.  
  
She paused for a moment, a hand out of the sink and poised to touch his arm before she turned her focus to the suds. "If you don't mind." Kat held her hand out and Vergil passed the plate over. "Would you mind drying and putting them away?"  
  
Her answer came in the form of Vergil reaching for the dish rag out the corner of her eye.  
  
Kat slid the plate into the water and fished around for utensils to scrub clean as Vergil began to work on drying what lie in the dish rack. She pulled her hand out once she grabbed enough and began to clean them with the sounds of cupboard doors opening and closing as background noise. Other than that, the silence was stifling and promised for a tense night.  
  
Even if it was Dante's doing, she couldn't help but wonder why he blew up the way he had. Just what triggered and caused it to simmer until Dante finally had enough. As far as she could recall, nothing had happened earlier in the day. Dante and Vergil hadn't gotten into a fight and it wasn't like Dante couldn't eat breakfast before he left.  
  
In fact, Kat had been on her way to give him a thermos filled with coffee before he stormed out the door. Besides, to say the customer had been bedraggled was a whole other matter entirely. It was the one call Vergil personally dealt with since they didn't bother listening to a single thing Kat was saying.  
  
Speaking of Vergil, he seemed to be the only one who left Dante to stew. Whether it be because he could care less or because he knew how Dante could get was left up to debate. Though, with what happened at the table, Kat was willing to put her money on Vergil knowing but having enough once Dante directed his frustration toward Kat.  
  
She furrowed her brow and scrubbed at the pot that had been soaking. _But that's no reason to -_  
  
Vergil paused and simply held the bowl he was drying with an unidentifiable look. "Next time just let him throw his tantrum." He cast a brief glance toward Kat before he went back to drying. "There's no talking to him once he gets like this. He's bullheaded and stubborn. Nothing gets through to him unless it's mother telling him that he's in the wrong."  
  
Kat blinked and her scrubbing motions slowed to nothing as she regarded Vergil. "He's always like that?"  
  
"Yes." Vergil moved to put the bowl in the cabinet. "Luckily he didn't destroy anything this time." He huffed. "Aside from the customer's backyard but I'll give him some leeway on that considering he was fighting a demon."  
  
Vergil gripped the handle to the cupboard, about to shut it but stopped midway before he looked at Kat.  
  
"Don't expect an apology anytime soon. Dante never apologized unless mother told him to. Not even father could get him to say he's sorry."  
  
"I'm not expecting anything."  
  
"Good. Because it would be a waste of time waiting for something that's never going to come." With that, he shut the cabinet with a decisive snap of his wrist. Kat couldn't help but wonder why Vergil seemed more bitter than he was trying to let on. He glanced over after a moment and sighed. "What's on your mind, Kat?"  
  
Kat pursed her lips and turned her attention to the sink once more. "Nothing. It's just...you sound angry, I guess." She looked down at the pot and began scrubbing again. "Like there's more to this than what Dante said to you."  
  
The harsh laugh she got in return was a surprise. Enough so that she stopped once again to look at Vergil as he shook his head while drying the plate in his hand. "Forgive me. I just remembered something and it's wrong of me to take it out on the dishes." He cocked his head to regard her. "Don't worry about it, Kat. In a way..." Vergil set the rag down and stared at the plate. "He gave me the answer to the question I've been asking myself for a while now."  
  
Her eyes widened slightly at the implications. Kat bent over the sink to peer up at him with her worry clear on her face. "...Vergil?"  
  
She would swear that the smile he gave her was sad even as he said, "It's okay, Kat."

 

**Author's Note:**

> I'm sorry, were you expecting happy-fun-times...?


End file.
